Ackee vs Umami
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted web analytics options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Ackee
Self-hosted, privacy-focused analytics tool
VS
Umami
Simple, fast, privacy-focused web analytics
| Feature | Ackee | Umami |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 89 · Excellent | 99 · Excellent |
| Category | Web Analytics | Web Analytics |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | JavaScript | TypeScript |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | docker | docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 4,709 | ★ 38,958 |
| First released | 2018 | 2020 |
| Replaces | Google Analytics | Google Analytics |
What are Ackee and Umami?
Ackee
Ackee is a self-hosted, Node-based analytics tool that tracks website visitors while respecting privacy and avoiding cookies. It targets developers wanting minimal, ethical analytics. It is deployed via Docker.
- Privacy-focused tracking
- GraphQL API
- Clean minimal dashboard
- No cookies used
Umami
Umami is a simple, fast, privacy-focused alternative to Google Analytics that collects no personal data and uses no cookies. It targets developers and site owners wanting easy, ethical analytics. It is deployed via Docker.
- Cookie-free privacy analytics
- Clean modern dashboard
- Multi-site and multi-user
- Tiny tracking script
Ackee vs Umami: key differences
Ackee is written in JavaScript, while Umami is built with TypeScript. Ackee is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 512 MB for Umami. Ackee is the more established project (first released 2018), while Umami arrived in 2020. Umami has the considerably larger community, at 38,958 GitHub stars versus 4,709.
Why pick each one
Choose Ackee if…
- Lightweight and private
- Easy to deploy
- Nice minimal UI
Watch out for
- Limited reporting depth
- Needs MongoDB
Choose Umami if…
- Very easy to self-host
- Privacy-friendly
- Clean interface
Watch out for
- Fewer features than Matomo
- Requires a database
Frequently asked questions
Is Ackee or Umami better?
Neither is universally better. Umami has the larger community; both share a easy setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are Ackee and Umami free and open-source?
Yes. Ackee is licensed under MIT and Umami under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Ackee and Umami with Docker?
Ackee: yes. Umami: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Ackee or Umami?
Ackee has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 512 MB for Umami. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.